Royal Courts of Justice - the High CourtStrand, London WC1

The Royal Courts of Justice are the nation's main civil courts.

Here, the High Court presides over the most serious civil trials in the country including divorce, libel, civil liability and appeals. Criminal cases are handled by the Old Bailey.
The imposing Victorian Gothic building, designed by G E Street, was opened by Queen Victoria in 1882, the architect's finest achievement, and the last major Gothic revival building in London.
Made from 35 million bricks faced with Portland stone, the Royal Courts of Justice are said to contain 1,000 rooms and 3.5 miles of corridors. The stress of building was so great that it caused Street's early death.

The interior of the building is as magnificent as the façade.

The public are admitted to all 88 court rooms and can come and go as they please, although Judges will not suffer interruptions when they are passing judgement or witnesses are taking oaths.

Prominent lists in the central hall indicate which case is being held in which court and how far the proceedings have gone.

The Royal Courts of Justice also contains a small exhibition of legal dress.

Hittegolf!

A group of Polish tourists cools down in London's Hyde Park as a heatwave hits England. (Picture from BBC)

Die grys, koue London is (bloedig) warm! Temerature styg tot in die 30's (Celsius), maar ek dink nie die Londoniete kla nie.

Lord Nelson word (weer) onthul

Restored naval hero is revealed

The years, and the pigeons, have taken their toll on Nelson's visageAfter having his arm X-rayed and being pigeon-proofed, the renovated statue of Lord Nelson is due to be unveiled.
The world famous column in Trafalgar Square has undergone a four month restoration, its first since 1986.

As part of the £420,000 refurbishment, Nelson's left arm, which was struck by lightning in the 1880s, was repaired.

Bronze straps on the arm were removed, and previously unavailable Craigleith stone, the material used to make the statue, was used to restore the arm.

Since the closure of the Craigleith quarry in Scotland 60 years ago, getting hold of the stone has been virtually impossible the company behind the restoration said and previous renovators had patched up Nelson using a mixture of mortar and cement.

Donated stone

The Craigleith stone used to repair Nelson was salvaged during a restoration of Donaldson's School for the Deaf, an A-listed building in Edinburgh, and was donated to the Nelson's Column restoration by Scottish company Watson Stonecraft.

The Grade I listed column was completed in 1843 to commemorate Admiral Horatio Nelson, who died at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805.

It was designed by William Railton and cost £47,500. The top is decorated with bronze acanthus leaves.

The square pedestal has four bronze panels, cast from captured French guns, depicting Nelson's four great victories.

We leave Nelson looking much better than he has for many years

Restorer Adrian Attwood

The Mayor of London Ken Livingstone, who commissioned the restoration, said: "Using the original stone has allowed the restorers to take an authentic approach to the conservation of a monument built 163-years ago.

"It will ensure that this unique monument can be enjoyed by Londoners and visitors to the capital for many years to come."

It has been cleaned several times but the whole monument has only undergone restoration twice previously, in 1968 and in 1986.

Adrian Attwood, from David Ball Restoration Limited, which carried out the restoration work, said: "Our philosophy at the start of the project was that we would repair Nelson as carefully as if it were a statue at ground level.

"Using the Craigleith stone and repairing Nelson's arm means that we have exceeded our own expectations. We leave Nelson looking much better than he has for many years."

For the first time a laser survey was carried out to check the dimensions of Nelson's Column which reveals it is shorter than previously thought, standing at just over 169ft (51.5m) when measured from street level to the top of the Nelson statue.

Op Anca se verjaarsdag...

... het Paddington Bear na Paddington stasie toe gery. Dit was deel van die koningin se amptelike verjaarsdag die volgende dag!

Paddington visit from famous bear

Paddington Bear, one of the stars of this weekend's Royal Children's Party, made a brief visit to the station he was named after on Friday.
The duffle coat-wearing bear strode down platforms on Friday morning, greeting commuters and tucking into his favourite snack - a marmalade sandwich.
Paddington will be going to the Children's Literature Garden Party held at Buckingham Palace on Sunday.

The party is one of the celebrations marking the Queen's 80th birthday.

Library festival

Paddington shares a birthday with the Queen - and also has another birthday on Christmas Day.
Michael Bond, the man who created the marmalade-fancying bear from Peru, will attend the party.

Up to 800 libraries across the UK will be taking part in a literary long weekend to try and get children to read for fun.

The Queen will send a message of support to libraries taking part.

On Sunday the grounds of Buckingham Palace will be transformed, featuring characters from the Big Friendly Giant and Winnie The Pooh.